Conn. to break ground on $567M bus-only project

HARTFORD -- After years of planning, state officials are scheduled to break ground on a rebranded half-billion-dollar Hartford-to-New Britain bus-only corridor, the only one in Connecticut.

Once known as the busway, the 9.4-mile route has been rebranded and is now called CTfastrak. Judd Everhart, a spokesman for the state Department of Transportation, says busway was never the official name of the project, but was used as short hand.

He says the name CTfastrak describes a new type of public transit, combining fast transportation free of traffic similar to rail travel with the flexibility and direct service of a bus.

Connecticut is spending $112 million as its share of the $567 million project. Critics say it's too costly and will fall short of ridership projections.

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and other officials are expected at the ground breaking.